Key Findings

The key findings from the project included:

• The evaluation of the current Protocol and Analysis workshop found that the majority of participants showed improvement in their knowledge although some participants performance remained unchanged. All participants expressed a high degree of satisfaction with the course. The lowest scores were for ‘small group discussions’ and ‘understanding the principles of developing a comprehensive search strategy’. The majority of participants were content with the nature of the small group work, although some participants evidently preferred lectures to small groups.
• The development and construction of the web-based course proved to be a larger challenge than originally thought by the facilitators and although the tertiary educational facility provided the software, it soon became apparent that a high level of technical support was required to effectively utilise this software.
• The resource implications for the ongoing maintenance of this web-based course (or modified versions of it) were thought to be similar to the didactic workshops. It was thought that the introduction of a web-based course would not necessarily result in savings.
• The resource implications for the ongoing maintenance of this web-based course (or modified versions of it) were thought to be similar to the didactic workshops. It was thought that the introduction of a web-based course would not necessarily result in savings.
• All participants would be keen to participate in a web-based course again. The judgment was to further improve the course. Recommendations from the participants were that this web-based course be used as a supplement to formal didactic teaching.
• No conclusions about the comparisons of the two different courses (didactic and web-based) could be made because of the low number of participants who were recruited to complete the web-based course. As a result, no content or construct validity could be evaluated.

Key Recommendations

The key recommendations from the project were:

Future development | This package is of importance to healthcare practitioners to enable them to practice in an evidence-based manner through the transfer of research findings to clinical practice via systematic reviews. A widely accessible and effective e-learning educational intervention in evidence-based practice could have significant benefits for healthcare outcomes. It is recommended that a modified web course could be developed as a useful tool, and as an adjunct to the current didactic workshop. Modifications to the web-based course should include compulsory milestones where activities such as exercises are required.

Workshop recommendations | Recommendations for the Cochrane Protocol and Analysis workshops were that: the didactic course should be regularly reviewed especially in regard to methodology changes and in specialist information retrieval; both the host educational facility and its staff are aware of all of the prerequisite and appropriate resource implications for web-based learning.